Saturday, May 25, 2002

Taming of the Shrew

Overheard in the audience in the Pence Gallery amphitheater at the conclusion of Acme Theatre's opening night of William Shakespeare's "Taming of the Shrew" -- "that was great fun--and I _hate_ Shakespeare."

It's hard to find anything to hate, or even mildly dislike about this lively production of one of Shakespeare's best known comedies. Director Dave Burmester explains that he has always had difficulty with this politically incorrect (though not for Shakespeare's time) story of a woman's spirit being tamed so that she can learn to become a good wife.

To get around the inevitable raised eyebrows from a more enlightened era, Burmester has taken his characters in a different direction. As he puts it, "It was important to show that Kate was not the only character to undergo a major change. To say more here, however, might spoil some of the fun."

Fun it definitely is. Taking inspiration from William Ball's staging of this comedy at San Francisco's American Conservatory Theatre in 1975, Burmester has created a version of "Taming of the Shrew" which is right out of commedia dell'arte, with supporting players watching the action on stage from scaffolding, wearing traditional masks and providing sound effects for the action on stage with drum, slide-whistle, and other noise makers.

Imagine The Three Stooges do Shakespeare.

This is an extremely physical--and highly choreographed production. Pratfalls, fanny paddles, head bonks, and other comic rhythms of slapstick, each with the accompanying sound effect make for non-stop entertainment.

What makes this production work are the talented actors. There aren't enough adjectives for the outstanding performance by Chris Schmidt as Petruchio, a "gentleman of Verona," who has come to Padua to "wive and thrive." He's looking for a wife with a big dowry and is not put off by the rumors of the quick temper of Katherine. Schmidt's performance is electric.

Jill Winternitz as Katherine is equally outstanding. She fights, she yells, she pouts and in the end she gives in (or does she?).

Rebecca Rukeyeser plays Baptista, Katherine's mother (the role is generally that of Katherine's father, but the gender of the parent seems to matter little). Rukeyeser has the most expressive face and did some of the best mugging of the night. She also gives a good solid performance to the role.

Shakti Howeth is "the lovely Bianca," Kate's younger, more desirable sister, with the face of an angel and a gentle disposition to match. Bianca is sought after by all the men in Padua, but cannot marry until a match is found for her older sister.

Steven Schmidt and Nick Herbert are Lucentio and Tranio, respectively. Lucentio is in love with Bianca and seeks assistance from his servant Tranio in his plan to win her hand. Schmidt and Herbert are very funny in their roles.

Special kudos to choreographer Crystal White for her delightful dances and dancers Laurel Cohen, Jean Marsh, Caleigh Drane, Katherine Moreno, Katie German, and White herself who bring them to life delightfully.

As always, the performance at The Pence Gallery suffers from uncomfortable seating (it is suggested that audience members bring their own chairs) and occasional difficulty in hearing dialog when an actor rushes his or her lines, as well as the unstaged background noises, but these are conditions which the Acme faithful have come to expect and accept as part of the fun of this free outdoor performance.

"The Taming of the Shrew" marks Acme's 20th performance on the Pence stage, a tradition which was begun as a thank you to the community for its financial support of the fledgling company. But a shadow hangs over the future of this Davis tradition. Current plans for a rebuilt Pence Gallery appear to compromise the tiny core area open space. Pence Gallery officials are unable to say exactly what form a new amphitheater might take other than to say it will be different.

However, plans suggest that the park area would be much smaller, too small, seemingly, to house a stage big enough and a seating area extensive enough to accommodate a full-scale theatrical production, even one as small in scope as Acme's annual Shakespeare offering.

It would be a tremendous loss to a community which has enthusiastically supported and enjoyed the performances of Acme and other theatre companies over the years. It is hoped that some sort of compromise can be worked out so that the Pence can have its expansion and the community will still be able to enjoy these free summer entertainments.

This may be the last chance to see Acme at the Pence Gallery amphitheater. There are performances remaining on the 25th, 26th and 27th. If you've never seen Acme in action, don't miss this gem of a production.

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Why "Bitter Hack"?

Everyone's a critic, but I get paid (a little bit) to do it. However, someone once took exception to one of my reviews and accused me of being a bitter hack. Rather than feel insulted, I decided to embrace the term and renamed this blog (previously named the rather bland "In My Opinion") to "Bitter Hack."

So thank, you, Anonymous, for making me sound more interesting than I really am!